L.A. wildflower hikes are at Mother Nature's mercy

It's the time of year for beautiful wildflowers to spring up in fields and valleys all over the Los Angeles area.

But if you're of the thousands of Southern Californians planning a hike to see the show, consider that Mother Nature can be fickle.

While some areas are seeing unexpectedly good seasons, including the Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy, others are not so lucky.

"It's not looking that good this year," says Jean Rhyne, an interpreter at the Antelope Valley California Poppy Preserve.

"We're looking at a late season, but we're not sure how good it's going to be."

Though Southern California hasn't seen a lot of rain the past two years, March was a wet month that prompted late germination, says Rhyne. The seeds might not survive.

According to the Theodore Payne Foundation's Wildflower Hotline, poppies are coming to life in large patches on the hillsides of the Harford Springs Preserve in Western Riverside County.

Though the area is well-known for its poppies, the Antelope Valley preserve is seeing their few Joshua Trees blooming significantly this year, as well as their grape soda lupine.

Lorrae Fuentes, the producer of the Theodore Payne wildflower hotline, says it's a hard season to predict.

"I can't predict where (it will bloom) because it all depends on the weather," Fuentes says. "Some places aren't ready yet, and some places will never happen."

She explains that hikers could even see a difference in blooms within a mile of each other - with one area full of bright, lively crops of flowers, and another dry and dead.

Currently, she recommends the Santa Monica Mountains as a go-to location.

So far, Fuentes has not received any reports from the San Gabriel Mountains, but she predicts there may be a late season for the higher elevations.

Ann Croissant, president of the board of directors for the San Gabriel Mountains Regional Conservancy, has a much more positive outlook.

"The best place and time this year is everywhere. (This year) started with very unusual seasonal blooming patterns - some plants bursting into bloom from the get-go and others hesitating to even break dormancy," Croissant says.

"Some of the blooms started in January. There will be many surprises as to what is in bloom and when this year. Timing will be everything instead of the usual predictability of blooming patterns."

Also optimistic about this year's wildflower season is Ann Dalkey, a stewardship associate with the Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy.

Though rainfall has been sparse, Dalkey says she's surprised by the floral abundance on the Peninsula.

"The humidity allowed the flowers to hold on to the moisture from the rain," Dalkey says. "Given we only got six inches of rain, it's doing remarkably well."

On the Peninsula, Dalkey recommends taking hikes at Three Sisters Reserve to see blue dicks, Forrestal Reserve for paintbrush flowers and Linden H. Chandler Preserve to see western tansey mustards.

"Some are smack-you-in-the-face kind of blooms, others are more subtle," Dalkey says. "Just find a nice spot, find a plant in bloom and just sit and watch what happens."